The film is narrated by Edward Herrmann, who was himself suffering from terminal brain cancer at the time of its production.

He died on December 31, 2014, three months before the film's release, making the series his final performance.

William P. Peters develops the Solid Tumor Autologous Marrow Program (STAMP) regimen.

John Banzhaf convinces the Federal Communications Commission to rule that anti-smoking advertisements need to be aired on television to counter the tobacco company ads.

[2] According to a review in The New York Times, the series is "absorbing", is "structured as an ever-evolving medical detective story, but the filmmakers give it heart as well by juxtaposing the history lessons with present-day personal profiles of cancer patients", seems perhaps "too much like a promotional video for cancer researchers and hospitals", and "touches only briefly on the significant issue of costs" but "achieves its main goal, which is to show the human impact of cancer.